Carbohydrates encompass a divers group of nutrients and consist of many different chemical structures that affect the body in different ways. Carbohydrates can be divided into two groups: those that contain simple sugar and those that contain complex starches and fibers. Simple sugars enter the bloodstream very quick and provide a rapid increase in energy to the body.
Complex starches enter the bloodstream more slow and provide a steady and sustained release of energy. It is important to understand the difference between these two types of carbohydrates because simple sugars tend to cause rapid changes in blood sugar levels while complex starches causes more stable blood sugar levels. The Glycemic Index (GI) is a value that measure how quickly a specific food product raises the blood sugar levels of an individual in comparison to glucose.
How Carbohydrates Affect Your Blood Sugar
Foods with a high Glycemic Index will raise the blood sugar levels of an individual quick while foods with a low Glycemic Index will raise the blood sugar levels slowly. Many people believe that foods with a high Glycemic Index is unhealthy for individuals. However, high Glycemic Index foods are not inherently bad for the body as the impact of those foods on the body can depend upon the portion size of the food containing those high Glycemic Index foods.
Glycemic Load is a metric that account for portion sizes of meals and foods. Glycemic Load is often more useful than Glycemic Index as Glycemic Load consider the total amount of carbohydrates that an individual consumes in a meal. Thus, an individual can enjoy a food with a high Glycemic Index but in small portion size such that the Glycemic Load of the meal will be low.
The metric of net carbohydrates is of use to many individuals because net carbohydrates indicates to the individual the amount of carbohydrates that the body will absorb as energy. Net carbohydrates can be calculated by taking the total number of carbohydrates that are in a food product and then subtracting the gram of fiber that the food product contains. Fiber is a component of carbohydrates but the body do not get absorbed by the fiber as an energy source (as the sugars do).
Instead, fiber acts as a physical barrier to the digestion of other carbohydrates in the body. Foods high in fiber, like lentils and chickpeas, will have a low Glycemic Index due to this ability of fiber to slow the digestion of carbohydrates in those foods. A few specific preparation method can change the impact that carbohydrates have upon the body.
For instance, if an individual cooked foods like potatoes or rice and subsequently cooled the cooked foods, the potatoes or rice will develop a type of resistant starch. Resistant starch acts as a type of prebiotic fiber and slow the bodys absorption of carbohydrates. Additionally, if an individual add a substance like vinegar or lemon juice to a meal that is being prepared, the addition of vinegar or lemon juice will slow the emptying of the stomach.
Thus, if the stomach emptying is slowed, the absorption of glucose from the meal will also be slowed. An individual can control the impact of carbohydrates by the timing of there meals that contain carbohydrates. For example, an endurance athlete may require meals that contain high volume of carbohydrates to provide the body with the sustained energy required for those activities.
Contrastingly, an individual who follows a ketogenic diet must limit the carbohydrates that they consume to ensure that their body burn fats for energy rather than carbohydrates for energy. Thus, most individuals aim to maintain their blood sugar levels. For instance, an individual may eat complex carbohydrates in the morning when they are active and reduce their carbohydrate intake in the evening.
An individual can also use the method of pairing carbohydrates with other nutrients to stabilize their blood sugar levels. If an individual consumes a food that contains a high Glycemic Index carbohydrate alone, their blood sugar levels will rise quick. However, if an individual pairs the high Glycemic Index carbohydrate with a source of protein or healthy fats, the rise in the blood sugar levels will be more gradual.
Protein slow the absorption of glucose by the body as does healthy fats. Thus, eating an apple with peanut butter is different than eating an apple by itself due to the protein and fat content of the peanut butter which aid in the slowing of the digestion of the sugars in the apple. Consequently, pairing carbohydrates with protein or fats will prevent the rapid rise in blood sugar levels following the consumption of carbohydrates.
